Showing posts with label cinnamon and sugar. Show all posts
Showing posts with label cinnamon and sugar. Show all posts

12.07.2012

Cinna-Bun Cookies

What are your
family's favorite recipe
for Santa Cookies?

There's Chocolate Chip...
Frosted Sugar...
maybe Gingerbread?

I've been trying 
a few NEW recipes
to really stop Santa in his tracks!!

I may have stumbled across a keeper:


Ingredients
{Recipe compiled from several recipes including Baker's Royale and Official Cinnabon Recipe}
Cookie:
2 cups Flour, all purpose
2 tsp. Ground Cinnamon
1 tsp. Salt
1/2 tsp. Baking Soda
1 stick Butter, softened
1/2 cup Brown Sugar
1 Egg, yoke only
1/4 cup Apple Butter
1 tsp. Vanilla Extract

Cinna-bon Smear:
{for inside of cookies}
3 tbsp. Butter, softened
1/2 cup Brown Sugar
1 1/4 tsp. Cinnamon
1/8 tsp. Salt

Cinna-bon Cream Cheese Frosting:
{to drizzle over cookies}
3 oz. Cream Cheese, cold
2 tbsp. Butter, softened
1/2 cup Powder Sugar
1 tsp. Vanilla Extract
1/8 tsp. Salt

Method
In a medium size bowl, combine flour, cinnamon, salt and baking powder. Set aside.
Cream butter and brown sugar together in a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment - add in egg yoke, apple butter and vanilla. Slowly mix in flour mixture until batter is completely combined. Divide batter in two balls and wrap each in plastic wrap or wax paper, rolling up to be as air tight as possible. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.

While the batter is chilling, preheat oven to 350 degrees and make cinnamon smear by combining all ingredients in a small bowl.

When batter has chilled, remove from plastic wrap and place on a floured cutting board. Roll out dough to 1/4 inch thickness and evenly spread smear from edge to edge of dough. Starting with one end, roll dough onto itself until a log is formed. {Repeat with second ball of dough.} Cut the very end of each log off, so that you will have an even starting point. Cut the logs in 1 inch pieces and place on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake for 8-12 minutes. Cool completely before frosting cookies.

While the cookies are cooling, prepare frosting by creaming the cheese and butter together in a kitchen mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Slowly add in powder sugar, vanilla and salt. Beat until frosting is fluffy and all powder sugar lumps are gone. Spread or pipe frosting onto cooled cookies and serve with ice cold milk!


These cookies are
soft, chewy and loaded 
with cinnamon bun flavor!

And, the creamy frosting
tops them off
perfectly ...


just as the greatest cinnamon bun should be!

Santa will be  pleasently surprised
with a plate of these
come Christmas Eve!

Enjoy and Happy Baking!


Oh, yeah! I partied this week! ->
Check out my sidebar to find out where! 

8.09.2011

Easiest Monkey Bread

Mason woke up this morning
telling me today was his birthday
and that we were having a party.

Which is super interesting
considering I distinctly remember
giving birth to him in a winter month!

Oh, the life of a 2 year old!
Dontcha just love what the lil' monkeys 
come up with!?

So, I decided to just go with it...

We watched Mickey Mouse ALL DAY,
played in his Spaceship Playhut
and I even made a little dessert to celebrate!

Mason's Half Birthday-Day
featuring:
{adequately named!!}
Ingredients
{adapted from Paula Dean}
Bundt-Style Pan
9 tbsp Sugar
3 tsp Cinnamon
1 cup Brown Sugar
1/2 stick Butter
1/2 tsp Vanilla Extract
Dash of Salt
2 tubes of Pillsbury Crescent Rolls
1/4 cup Sweetened Condensed Milk
1 cup Chopped Pecans

Method
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
In a small bowl, combine sugar and cinnamon, mix well and set aside.
In a small sauce pan, melt the butter and brown sugar until incorporated. Stir in vanilla and salt and set aside.
Open the crescent roll tubes and lay each triangle out flat on a large cutting board or parchment paper.


Brush each with a little condensed milk and sprinkle with the cinnamon and sugar mixture.


Spray pan with nonstick cooking spray and sprinkle 1/2 cup of the pecans into the pan. Starting with the little end of the triangle, roll the crescent roll up and pinch the sides to make a bundle. Place half of the bundles into the pan, on top of the pecans. Spoon half of the brown sugar/butter mixture on top. Now, repeat - pecans, bundles, brown sugar/butter.


Bake for 45mins-1hour, then let cool for 10-15 minutes. Invert onto a plate/platter and serve warm.


Great Variations:
Add Chocolate Chips
Use Nutella instead of Cinnamon Sugar
OR Banana and Peanut Butter
Add Apple and/or Raisins 
Add a variety of Chopped Nuts
Mrs. Paula Dean used Chocolate and Banana

The combinations are honestly 
endless!


This bread's aroma 
is intoxicating -
so soothing and warm!

It smells just like
breakfast at home!
Ahhh...


Enjoy and Happy Baking!

Party Time:
Topsy Turvy Tuesdays
Show Me What Ya Got - Not Just A Housewife
Cast Party Wednesday - Lady Behind The Curtain
Whatever Goes Wednesday - Someday Crafts
This Chick Cooks
WOOT WOOT Wednesdays - The Tootsie Wootsie
What I Whipped Up Wednesday - Sugar and Dots
Under $100 Linky Party - Beyond The Picket Fence
Recipe Swap - Prairie Story
Sweet Treats Thursdays - Something Swanky
Show Off Your Stuff - Fireflies and Jellybeans
Creative Juices - Momnivore's Dilemma
Delightfully Inspiring Thursday - Delightful Order 
Sweet Tooth Friday - Alli N Son
Foodie Friday - Little Brick Ranch
Weekend Wander - While He Was Napping
Friday Flair - Whipperberry
Sweets For A Saturday - Sweet As Sugar Cookies
Sweet Indulgence Sunday - A Well Seasoned Life

8.02.2011

Apple Pie Cupcakes

Mason is on this apple kick.
Like, two apples a day kind of kick.
And his interest has peaked mine
to re-think Apple Cupcakes.

There are so many different recipes
out there in bloggy world ... 
my biggest challenge was 
creating something unique.

My favorite part of 
a pie is the crust!
So, I wanted there to be a little
in each bite.

This, my friends, is how they turned out:


Warm spice cake with pie crust bits baked in and a cinnamon-apple filling. The cupcake is topped with crunchy pie crust bits and vanilla spice cream cheese frosting "ice cream."


This cupcake
BURSTS
with american apple pie flavor
and is cute-as-a-button to boot!

Ingredients
Refrigerated Pie Crust
2 tbsp. White Sugar
1/2 tsp. Cinnamon

2 Green Apples, peeled and chopped
1/2 cup White Raisins or Dried Cranberries {optional}
3 tbsp. Butter
1/2 cup Brown Sugar
Juice from 1 Lemon
1/2 tsp. Apple Pie Spice
1/8 tsp. Salt
1 tsp. Vanilla Extract
1 tbsp. Cornstarch mixed with 2 tbsp. Water

2 1/2 cup Flour
2 tsp. Baking Powder
2 tsp. Cinnamon
1 tsp. Ground Ginger
1/4 tsp. Nutmeg
1/4 tsp. Allspice
1/4 tsp. Salt
1 stick Butter, room temp.
1 1/4 cups of Light Brown Sugar, packed
3 Large Eggs
1 1/4 cup Buttermilk
1 Vanilla Bean, split to expose insides

Method
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Mix the sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl. Break pieces of the pie crust off and roll in the cinnamon-sugar mixture. Bake for 8 minutes, or until golden. Set aside.


Melt butter in a skillet over medium heat. Add apples {and raisins, if using} and cook for 1 minute. Add sugar, lemon juice and seasonings and coat apples.  Let apples cook on low until tender - add cornstarch/water mixture and stir in immediately. When thickened, pull off of heat and set aside to cool.

Combine dry ingredients in a bowl for the cupcakes and set aside. Cream butter and sugar with the paddle attachment of a stand mixer until light and fluffy - add eggs one at the time until combined. Alternating the dry ingredients with the buttermilk, slowly add both to egg mixture. Once the batter forms, add the insides of the split vanilla bean and the baked pie crust pieces. Spoon batter into muffin cups, 1/2-3/4 full. Dollop a tbsp. amount of pie filling in the center of each. Bake for 16-18 minutes, or until the cake has set. Let cool on a wire rack.


To finish, I dolloped a "scoop" of my favorite vanilla cream cheese frosting with a dusting of cinnamon on top and more crumbled pie crust. This recipe makes 24 mini cakes.

These are truly an Apple Pie
in CUPCAKE form!
Mmm, mmm! 


The cake is super spicy.
The filling is sticky and juicy.
The frosting is light and sweet.
And, the pie crust gives the cupcakes a perfect crunch.


Move ova Apple Pie -
there's a new kid in town
and he ROCKS!

PS: These pictures were taken with my NEW camera!! Whoop, Whoop!! :)


Parties I Linked To:
What I Whipped Up Wednesday - Sugar and Dots
WOOT WOOT Wednesdays - The Tootsie Wootsie
Savvy Homemade Mondays - Savvy Homemade A-Z
Whatever Goes Wednesday - Someday Crafts
This Chick Cooks 
Cast Party Wednesday - Lady Behind The Curtain
Show Off Your Stuff Party - Fireflies and Jellybeans
Under $100  Linky Party - Beyond The Picket Fence
Sweet Treat Thursdays - Something Swanky
Foodie Friday - Little Brick Ranch
Sweets For A Saturday - Sweet As Sugar Cookies
Weekend Wrap Up - Tatertots and Jello
Sundae Scoop - i {heart} naptime
Shindig Saturdays - Kims Kandy Kreations
Sweet Indulgences Sundays - A Well Seasoned Life
Recipe Sharing Monday - jam hands
Topsy Turvy Tuesdays